Unchained Melody
by justanoutlaw
Summary: Regina is dragged to a psychic by her friend, where it's told she'll end up with a man with the lion tattoo. She thinks it's bull...until her jog goes awry.


"**And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it."-Roald Dahl**

Fairytale Visions was at the very end of Main Street. It was so far off that some people didn't really count it as part of the strip, Regina certainly didn't. She had only looked at the shop once since she moved to town and from the sign, she first assumed it to be an eye doctor. Then she caught wind of the neon signs in the windows. One read "Tarot Cards" while the other proudly proclaimed that it was a psychic shop. There were green felt curtain pulled down, so one couldn't see inside. The only way one could tell if it was open or not, was the sign that hung above the door.

Regina didn't believe in psychics. She had grown up in New York City, where they were on almost ever corner, same as Starbucks. Her mother had always turned her nose up at them.

"They can't tell your future," Cora Mills told her daughter when she was barely old enough to read the signs. "Only you can build it."

That was the philosophy Regina had stuck with for a majority of her life. She got good grades in school and did lots of volunteer work, which opened the doors to a scholarship at Columbia University. Lots of hard work and dedication gave her a degree in business and marketing. She worked her butt off as the assistant to Raymond Gold, who owned a successful chain of jewelry stores scattered throughout the United States. It was all of that, that landed her on the marketing team of a boutique that ran out of the small town in Maine.

Yes, Regina hadn't gotten her life by magic. She had built herself up and was proud of that. The only thing missing in her life, was a partner. She had a fiancé, a man she loved, but he had passed away not long after he proposed. It had crushed her heart, but it had also been ten years since and she was ready to move on. There had been several relationships in New York, but they all failed. She had done the dating app thing for a few months, but after the second Catfish, she deleted all of those.

All of that was how she found herself being dragged to Fairytale Visions by her new co-worker, Mary Margaret Blanchard. Mary Margaret talked a lot, was very bubbly and always had a smile on her face-even when their hard ass boss was yelling at them. She was nothing like the people Regina knew in New York and that made her intriguing. They had been having lunch together ever since Regina started out at the company. That slowly lead to drinks after work and a few girls' nights. Regina was starting to consider her a friend.

Until Mary Margaret insisted they had a physic tell them their futures.

"This is stupid," Regina grumbled as they climbed out of the car. "She's probably a huge scam artist."

"Maybe she is, or maybe she'll tell us who we'll end up with, what our futures will be like." Mary Margaret clasped her hands together, a dreamy look on her face.

"We decide our own destiny," Regina said, a little scared of how much she sounded like Cora in that moment.

"Maybe so, but this will be fun. Come on, Regina. I told you I'm paying for it."

"That's the only reason I decided to come along," she grumbled.

Mary Margaret chuckled, linking arms with her. "Let's go in."

A little bell dinged as they stepped inside, the smell of incense filled Regina's nostrils. She was mid-sneeze when a short blonde approached them.

"Bless you," she said, her British accent thick.

Regina nodded, sniffling a bit. "Thanks." She took the woman in. A dress that matched both the fabric and the color of the drapes clung tightly to her body and her frizzy hair was pulled back into a bun with a matching green kerchief.

"I'm Regina, that's Mary Margaret," she gestured to her co-worker.

"Tink," the woman replied.

Regina tilted her head. "Tink? Like…"

"We're not here to learn about me," Tink interrupted with a wave of the hand. "What are you two here for today? Palm reading? Tea leaves?"

"Just regular readings," Mary Margaret said, cheerily.

"Great. That'll be $120 each."

Regina glanced over at Mary Margaret, who was happily handing over her credit card to the woman they just met. Money wasn't an issue for her, but she could think of many other things Mary Margaret could buy with that a hundred dollars. For one, there was a really great shoe sale at the local mall…

Tink ran through their payments and then clasped her hands together. "Alright, who will go first?"

"Regina," Mary Margaret said.

"Oh, no. You're the one that wanted to come here."

"I can wait."

Regina rolled her eyes, but followed Tink through the beaded curtains that lead to her back room. There was a card table set up, with a large bureau pushed against the wall that had at least a hundred drawers. Each was labeled with things like "crystals" or "cards". There was no crystal ball or any of the typical movie cliché things that Regina had grown to expect. Even so, she still wasn't buying it.

"You think I'm a crock," Tink said, as they settled down at the table.

"Gee, you read minds or something?"

"Your energy makes it obvious."

"Look, I grew up in New York. You people are a dime a dozen, just looking for a quick buck. There's no such thing as predicting the future, you have to build it on your own."

"Wouldn't it be helpful to know what you're building towards?"

"Whatever you say."

"You have to believe, even a little bit or you wouldn't be here."

Regina didn't respond and Tink smiled, before shutting her eyes.

"You've got a lot of success headed your way."

"Yeah, because that's not vague at all," Regina mumbled.

Tink ignored her, rolling forward as if she hadn't even spoke. "You're not going to be alone, though. There will be someone by your side, a man."

"The odds of marriage in this country are exceptionally high."

Once again, her snarky remarks fell on deaf ears. "The man will be a challenge for you. You wo are so different, yet you'll be able to match him snark for snark. Sandy blonde hair, dimples and blue eyes, they're so handsome. I see him standing by your side, wearing a suit."

"Let me guess, at our wedding?"

"No, I can't tell the exact occasion, but you are definitely not wearing white. He's a bit warm, so he rolls up his sleeve and reveals…oh, he has a lion tattoo."

Regina cocked an eyebrow. "A lion tattoo?" That was less random. At the same time, Tink could be pulling crap out of her ass.

"Yes, it's a silhouette, penned in black ink, on his forearm. A bit faded, so he's clearly had it for a while."

Her words left Regina with a warm feeling in her stomach, until she shook it off. This was just for fun. What were the odds that the man she would one day marry have such a tattoo?

Robin sat in the parlor, the sketch gripped firmly in his hands. He had always been put off by the idea of getting one, but he knew that the page wouldn't stay preserved for long. He was lucky that in between his move across the pond, it didn't get wrinkled. Somehow, this picture had survived a lot. First, the rainstorm the night after Marian drew it for him. Next, it somehow escaped the fire that took her life. He had it in his bag when he took his citizenship test and passed with flying colors.

He didn't believe in luck, that was silly. A lion stood for bravery and that was what Robin felt whenever he looked at the picture. He was reminded of the man that Marian had wanted him to be. It was the man that he wanted himself to be. After years of not knowing what he wanted to do with his life, there had only ever been one thing that remained the same: he wanted to be brave, daring. Marian had always joked that he was a lionheart. Sometimes, she'd even call him Richard instead of Robin.

That was going to be what they named their son, had they ever gotten the chance.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Killian asked from his spot beside Robin. "It's gonna hurt. Especially where you want it."

Robin gestured to Killian's own forearm tattoo. The two had met in a grief group and the first thing Robin had noticed about his friend, was heart with the dagger through it that contained Milah's name. "You would know."

"Aye, and I don't regret mine. When I look at it, she feels closer to me."

"Well, this is going to help me feel closer to Marian. She drew this for me."

"You could just get her name."

"Marian hated those. She always said, what if you met someone else?"

"If I meet someone that can't accept Milah, then I don't want her around."

"Well, this is what Marian would've wanted. More importantly, it's what I want."

"So long as your sure. These things are a lifetime commitment and they hurt like a motherfucker."

"I'm sure. Trust me."

The owner of the shop, August, followed his previous customer out the back. He turned to Killian, a smile on his face. He had done all of his tattoos, from the Milah one to the anchor on his abs.

"So, what are we doing today?" He asked.

"It's not for me," Killian replied. "My buddy Robin, here."

Robin stood up, extending the paper to August. "Think you could do something like this?"

August studied it for a moment. "Where would you want it?"

"My forearm."

"I'd have to shrink the image a bit, but then I'd be able to trace it."

A smile fell over Robin's face. "That'd be awesome."

He returned the following day with Killian. His sleeve was rolled up and extended, ready to be inked. The sketch being copied onto his arm was the easy part, but soon a whirling sound filled his ears. Killian wasn't lying, the needle hurt. The shading was especially painful, but he bit his lip and fought his way through it. Robin did his best to not look at his arm, the only signs of how much he had left was based off of Killian or August's comments. He focused on the sheet of designs August posted on the wall for people to choose from if they didn't have a basic idea. Two stuck out in particular, one being a crown and the other an apple. He wasn't sure why, but he couldn't break his eyes away.

Finally, the needle turned off and he slipped his eyes down. It was a bit swollen and bruised, but there it was. The lion wasn't even looking up at him, he looked like he was ready to attack. Robin smiled, wanting to touch it, but knowing better.

"Ya know, they say lions are a sign of bravery," August quipped.

"Yeah," Robin said, the smile not leaving his face. "I'm aware."

Fall turned to winter and soon that became spring. Regina was starting to forget all about Tink's words. She hadn't taken them seriously to begin with, but it was hard to not think about it when Mary Margaret kept going on and on about her own reading. Tink had told her that she would meet a farmer with golden locks. Regina wasn't even sure if Storybrooke even had any farms, so she doubted that would happen. In time, it seemed that Mary Margaret had even forgotten Tink's words or had realized that Tink was full of crap. Finally, their conversations could return to work and reality.

Until Mary Margaret actually met a man named David in the spring. He had blonde hair, blue eyes and had grown up on a farm upstate, though he was now the town sheriff. Mary Margaret gloated the entire time to Regina, who just rolled her eyes.

"It has to be a coincidence. Besides, she said you'd meet a farmer. Not a kid that grew up on a farm once," she pointed out.

"You're just jealous because your man hasn't shown up yet. Who'd Tink say you'd end up with anyway?"

"Don't worry about it."

She knew that if she told Mary Margaret, she'd do her best to play matchmaker. The last thing Regina needed was her best friend getting arrested for tracking down every man with a lion tattoo. Though, she supposed Mary Margaret's new sheriff boyfriend would let her free for a few kisses.

As spring was slowly melting into summer, Regina started to take up running again. Storybrooke was a little Hamlet, which meant there wasn't much in the way of healthy eating. Her assistant often made Granny's runs for her and it was showing in her midsection. She chose to take the path that went through the forest by her home. She didn't have time in the mornings before work, so she chose to go in the afternoon. It was cooler by then anyway and she could get away with wearing a t-shirt and leggings, rather than her usual tank.

One late Wednesday afternoon, she jogged down her usual path. The only sounds were those of the birds that chirped in the trees. Soon the crickets and the fireflies would be out, but she liked that about Storybrooke. In Manhattan, her jogging options had been limited to running around Central Park. There were way too many people there. It seemed like no one knew about her secret spot.

That was until she felt something whizzing past her head. She ducked down, but in the process tripped over a rock she hadn't noticed. Tumbling to the ground, she cursed herself, taking hold of her knee. Her mind only focused on the pain for a moment, until she heard a British accent.

"Milady?"

She slowly looked up and found an arm outreached to her. A tall man with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes stood before her, wearing a light sweatshirt and beat up jeans. Over his other shoulder was a bag filled with bows and arrows. Regina turned to look at the tree and saw an arrow sticking out from it. That must have been his doing.

"You're injured," the mystery man continued when she didn't speak, gesturing to the small amount of blood that could be seen through her white leggings.

"Well, that'd be your fault," Regina grumbled. "And I'm fine."

"A simple thank you would suffice."

Regina rolled her eyes, but allowed the man to help her up.

"What the hell were you doing out here anyway?" She asked.

"I didn't realize this wasn't a public forest."

Regina felt her eyes rolling once again. "I meant tossing arrows."

"It's called archery, my favorite pastime."

"Especially when you try to kill joggers?"

"I didn't realize you were coming. Besides, I have good aim. If I was trying to take your head off, you'd be dead by now."

Regina crossed her arms over her chest, not sure why she had to fight off a smile. "I run every day after work and I've never seen you."

"Normally I shoot when there's better sun, but I got called into work." His eyes floated back down to her knee. "Really, you should let me look at that."

"Right, I trust the mysterious man with a bow."

"What if I told you that I'm also a nurse at the pediatric office?" The man smiled, flashing her some dimples. "The name's Robin." He unzipped his sweatshirt a bit, revealing that he was wearing scrubs with little cartoon foxes beneath it. "I live close by."

Regina bit her lip, unsure of what to do. Just because he was a nurse, didn't make him not a serial killer. He had nearly killed her after all. Yet, there was something about him. Regina was good at reading people and he didn't seem like much of a threat.

"Fine," she said. "Just…don't get in my way next time."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

This time, Regina couldn't help it, she was smiling. Limping a bit due to the pain, she followed Robin back to his cottage which was near the opposite clearing that she had come from. He helped her sit on the couch before leaving the room and returning a few moments later with a first aid kit. Slowly, he rolled up the pant leg and inspected the cut.

"Nothing major, won't require stitches, just a bandage."

"I figured."

Robin grabbed hold of some wipes. "I've washed my hands, don't worry. This may sting just a bit," he warned, before cleaning the blood off her knee. She hissed a bit, but he pressed on. Reaching into his kit once more, he produced a bandage.

"Plain brown? I was expecting rainbows or unicorns."

Robin chuckled. "Those I leave at work. I have this mostly for when my friend gets injured and he's not exactly the unicorn type." He pressed the bandage on. "There, all better."

"Thank you." Regina gave him a sincere smile. "I mean it, If I had walked all the way back to my house, I'd be in even more pain."

"Yeah, you might want to rest that for a while. Let me fetch you some aspirin. You're not allergic to anything are you?"

"Nope."

Robin disappeared, coming back with the two white pills and a small cup of water as promised. Regina downed it and he sat beside her.

"I can't believe you'd let me into your home," Regina teased. "I could've been an evil killer."

"I'm pretty good at reading people and I didn't pick up on evil. Bold and audacious perhaps, but not evil."

Regina smirked. "Fear is quite an effective tool, it's served me well in the past."

Robin stared at her for a moment and she couldn't believe she felt the warm feeling come to her stomach. She hadn't realized just how handsome he was, up until that moment. How could she be feeling this way about a man she just met? Much less one that smelled of forest and could've killed her if his aim hadn't been as good.

"I would like to make this up to you, truly," Robin said, after a few beats of silence.

"You nursed me back to health."

"Even so. I have a feeling whisky might make up for it. Not today, obviously, as I've just given you some medicine…but maybe some other time."

"Are you asking me out?" Regina asked, raising an eyebrow.

"If I were, what would you say?"

"That you're crazy…but, also yes."

Regina found herself outside The Rabbit Hole the following day after work. She had to rush to meet Robin, so she was still in her black dress that she had worn to woo some clients. Her usual grey jacket had been paired with it, so for some color she threw on a blue scarf she had found in her car. She watched as a brown truck parked behind her Mercedes and Robin stepped out. He wore a green long sleeved t-shirt and once again, some beat up jeans. She felt terribly overdressed, suddenly.

Robin walked over, his dimples showing when he smiled. "You look beautiful," he said. "How's the knee?"

"Much better. I was able to stand at my meeting today with no problems."

He looked down at her shoes and chuckled. "In heels no less. Brave woman."

"You could say that."

"Ready for our drink?"

"Oh, yes."

She followed him into the bar, which was quiet given that it was only six o'clock. The daytime drunks had stumbled home to their wives and the partiers wouldn't come out until nine at the earliest. They ordered some appetizers to go with their drinks, before being left alone to wait in silence.

"So, you said you had a meeting?" Robin asked. "What is it that you do?"

"I'm in marketing for Glass Slipper Boutiques."

"Upscale place, some of the richer patients shop there."

"It's not really my style, but it's a great company for the most part. The boss can be a bit harsh at times, but is that any different?"

"Mine is a total sleaze." Robin rolled his eyes. "Always hitting on the moms, makes inappropriate jokes around the kids."

"Yet he still has a practice?"

"One of the few pediatricians in Storybrooke."

"Pitfall of a small town."

"Did you grow up here?"

"No, New York City. You're from England, I suppose."

"Southport to be specific."

"When'd you move to the states?"

"Four years ago, after my wife passed."

Regina frowned. "I'm so sorry."

"It's fine. Like I said, it's been four years."

"I lost my fiancé as well, not long after he proposed."

"The pain never goes away, huh?"

"Not really."

The bartender returned, placing the drinks down and promising their appetizers would be out soon. Robin picked up one of the glasses, extending it to Regina.

"To new beginnings."

Regina went to take it, when she realized that his sleeve had rode up a bit which revealed a tattoo on his forearm. More specifically, a lion tattoo.

"Oh, he has a lion tattoo."

It was the first time that Regina had thought about the physic in weeks and yet, there it was. Her eyes stayed trained on it, as her heart picked up. No, this didn't make any sense. She had gone to appease Mary Margaret, that was all. Tink was a crock, nothing she said was accurate…right?

Except there were other things she had said as well.

"The man will be a challenge for you. You wo are so different, yet you'll be able to match him snark for snark. Sandy blonde hair, dimples and blue eyes, they're so handsome."

Robin matched the physical description and for the whole 24 hours she had known him, half of their conversation had been based on wit.

No, no, this couldn't be happening. Had Mary Margaret gone back to Tink and pressed her for information? This had to be a set-up of some kind. Yet, Robin seemed equally as surprised by their meeting as she had. Could it all really be a coincidence?

"Are you alright?" Robin's words snapped her out of it and she looked up into his concerned gaze. "It's just alcohol, it's not going to bite."

Regina carefully accepted it, taking a large sip. She sure as hell was going to need it.

Regina was hesitant to continue the relationship with Robin, yet somehow found herself unable to stay away. They set up dates when they could, varying from going back to the bar to even venturing out of town so she could eat something else besides Granny's. By fall, they were popping into each other's work to surprise their partner for lunch. Robin even met Mary Margaret and David, the former of which was clearly surprised by the situation. Regina then knew that her friend had nothing to do with it. Mary Margaret couldn't keep a secret to save her life and if this had truly been her handywork, she would've been bragging for days.

Still, Regina wondered how it was possible. Was it really a coincide? How many men like Robin were out there? In the time between seeing Tink and meeting him, she had come across tons of blondes, but none with the distinctive tattoo.

She found herself falling more for him by the day. Things progressed so quickly, that he came down to New York with her for Christmas so he could meet her parents. Cora was standoffish, as usual, but Henry welcomed him with open arms. While there, Cora invited them to attend a winter gala at her work. Regina had told Robin they didn't have to go, but he insisted that they would have fun.

The night of the gala, Regina put on the red dress that her old college roommate Belle had selected for her. Her husband would be attending and Belle had found a beautiful emerald dress to wear. She assured Regina it'd be like their sorority days, wearing matching things to parties. So, Regina had agreed and told her to just get whatever she was getting in a different color.

The dress was red, with sequins on the neckline, sleeves and belt around the waist. She had to admit, the dress looked nice. Next to Belle it'd look like they were purposefully trying to meet the Christmas theme, but she didn't care. For the first time since Daniel, she had a date she actually wanted at her mother's gala.

Cora insisted on making an entrance with her daughter, so she had the boys go first and they met them there. Regina watched as her mother headed down the steps, all eyes on her out of fear rather than her beauty. Once she had reached the bottom, Regina walked down and found her eyes solely on Robin. The way he looked at her, she hadn't had a man look at her in such a way in such a long time.

She got to the bottom and kissed her father's cheek before turning to Robin, who pulled her into his arms for a quick kiss.

"You look radiant," he whispered.

"As do you."

She took her place by his side so Cora could make her speech. As her mother spoke, Robin rolled up his sleeves a tad, revealing the tattoo. That was the first time Regina considered telling him about Tink.

After their holiday in Manhattan, Regina and Robin were clearly reaching the next level of their relationship. They were 8 months in and she could feel "I love you" on the tip of her tongue. It was real, all of it. Whether Tink had been right or just guessing, she had found the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

They had agreed on an indoor fireside picnic at her house for Valentine's Day. Regina was looking through the wine selections at the store, when she heard a familiar voice.

"I remember you." Regina turned to find Tink standing there. For a small town, she had somehow not seen her since the day of her reading. "You were the skeptic."

Regina laughed. "Hard to believe I'm the only one."

"You just have one of those faces. Besides, I ran into your friend the other day and she couldn't stop thanking me. Guess I was right about her. Was I with you?"

Regina paused, wondering if she should give Tink credit. After all, it could just be a coincidence. "I've met someone, yes."

"And does he have a lion tattoo."

There was a beat of silence. "Yes, he does."

Tink grinned. "Well, guess I'm not a crock after all."

"Be straight with me," Regina said. "Can you really see the future?"

"What do you think?"

"The readings you gave us were so vague and yet…they actually happened. Still, it could all boil down in coincidence."

"Nothing in life is a coincidence, my darling. You can believe what you want, but from the look in your eye, you've found a soulmate."

"I never…"

"You were right about one thing, though. We're all responsible for our own futures. Sure, I told you what would happen in your own, but it is up to the two of you make it last."

"That still doesn't answer my question. Are you real?"

"Now if I told you…would I really stay in business for long?"

Before Regina could respond, Tink walked away. Regina stared after her, unsure of what she believed…when it came to the mysterious woman's abilities that was. Tink was right. Whether or not she really could see the future, Regina still had to do the work.

That night, she sat by the fireplace with Robin, their picnic assembled. The two clinked their wine glasses before taking sips and sharing a kiss. She cupped his cheeks as they pulled away, staring into his eyes for the millionth time that evening.

"What is it?" He asked.

"I just never thought I'd have this," she answered, truthfully, pulling her hands away.

"After I lost my wife, I felt like that for a long time. When I finally realized she wasn't coming back, however, I was able to let go. Now, I have you." He stroked her cheek.

Regina nodded, chewing on her bottom lip. "Do you believe in fate?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just what I said. Do you believe that we all have soulmates out there, waiting for us? That some people are able to tell that?"

Robin tilted his head. "Are you asking if I believe in physics?"

"Yes."

"Well…I believe that there are people out there that want to scam others and prey on the weak, the desperate. But I also like to think that it's possible, that there are those that could help guide those to who they belong to. Why do you ask?"

Regina let out a deep breath. It had been over a year since she met Tink and outside Mary Margaret, she had spoken of it with no one. Heck, even her friend didn't know what the psychic had told her.

"Months before I met you, Mary Margaret dragged me to a psychic. I didn't believe in it, but she was so insistent. There, the woman, Tink…she told me it was possible. She told me I'd love again. She read my future and she told me…about this man I was destined to be with."

A smile tugged on Regina's lips, thinking back to how impossible it all seemed back then.

"She told me that he was tall, blonde with blue eyes. That he could match my snark and most of all, he had a tattoo." She grabbed hold of his arm and pushed up his sweater. "A lion tattoo."

Robin looked from it, back up at her, a bit surprised. "It was me?"

"I never saw anything she did, but yes. I do believe she saw you." The smile slowly left her face as a bit of nervousness came to it, scared he would run out screaming. "I didn't seek you out, because I didn't think it was real. Hell, I'm still not sure."

There was a beat of silence, which only added to Regina's growing anxiety. She sounded like a crazy person, she was sure of it. Slowly, a smile formed on Robin's face. Much to Regina's relief, he didn't look like he thought she was crazy for possibly believing Tink. "

"Well, maybe things work out when they're supposed to," he said. His hand cupped her cheek once more, pushing some hair out of the way. "Maybe it's all about timing."

"You don't think I sound crazy?"

"I don't know if I believe this Tink or not. What I do know, is that what I've felt with you these past 8 months is very real, Regina. So, whether we're soulmates or not…I know that I love you."

Regina smiled. "I love you too."

She leaned in and kissed him. It lingered for a long while, until they had to pull away for air.

"Did this woman say anything about having sex by the fire?" Robin murmured into her ear.

Regina laughed. "No, but I do know that life is all about making your own fate."


End file.
